"JADIE" from the Grizzly Adams Show

"JADIE" from the Grizzly Adams Show
ANGELA WIINOW and her Collies have
been signed to appear at the Illinois State
Fair in August
THE CHANDLERS visited Great American Circus when the show played St Augustine, Fla.
Page 3
The Circus Report
PBA Circus
The PBA Circus played to full houses for
its two performance, April 17, engagement
in Newport Ritchie, Fla.
The program began with a three ring low
wire display featuring the Valla Duo in the
center ring. Next came a double cradle presentation with Frank and Doris Galambos
and The Andersons (Tammy Wallenda and
Ian Craik).
Bobby Fairchild's Sword Balance came
next on the bill as Eddy Murrillo demonstrated a most unusual and crowd-pleasing
spinning top routine.
This was followed by Jeff Earl's Poodles
in Ring 1, while Yvonne Stehpenson's Merry Muts were in Ring 3.
JoMar the Clown (Joe Myers) and the inimitable Danny Chapman demonstrated
the intricacies of landing a rocket on the
moon.
After this came a nice aerial display with
Miss Leann and Miss Sonya on webs with
Carmen del Molino on the balancing trap-
SIM4U OATIS Oft TOURS CONTACT
POLES and STAKES
WE SELL POLES AND STAKES
WOOD AND METAL
ALL SIZE TENT POLES
FROM 7 ft. to 32 ft.
VAN TENT POLE CO.
Johnson Avenue
Johnstown, NY - 12095
Phone. 5 1 8 - 7 6 2 -8969
eze.
Two rings of ponies (Ian Craik, Yvonne
Stephenson) followed the book pitch. Miss
Liu (Lisa Johnson) then caught the audience's attention with a strikingly attractive cloud swing.
The first half was concluded by the lively
Frank Galambos Family with an interesting
melange of rolling globe, roly boly and juggling.
Hunky Johnson's bears led off the second
half, followed by Leann Stephenson's daring loop walk.
A clown-walkaround preceded the three
ring juggling display featuring Bobby Fairchild in the center ring.
Johnson & Johnson's comedy whip act
kept up the pace of the program. Baby elephant Pasha (growing fast) was then presented hy Jeff Earl.
The concluding act was the Bertini Family
demonstrating the unicycle skills of Monica
Bertini arid her sensational brother George.
Program was produced by Ron Morris with
all equipment leased from Roberts Bros. Circus.
Visitors included Ron Bacon, Mary JoCouls
and Donna McMahon.
Page 4
SHOW DATES
Circus Vargas
May1Q-13W.Covina,Ca,
14-17 San Fernando
Coronas Circus
May 13-14 Jackson, Miss.
Dunn Buggy's Suitcate Cir.
May 8 Jamestown, SC
Hamid-Morton Circus
May 14-16 White Plains,
NY
M & M Circus
May15No.Platte,Nebr.
Pickle Family Circus
May 1*2 Mill Valley.Ca.
7-9 Berkeley
15-16 San Anselmo
Ringling-Barnum - Blue
to May 31 New York, NY
Ringling-Bamum - Red
May 11-16 Hartford,Conn
TNT & Royal Olympic
May 1 1 - 1 5 Houma, La.
Zerbini/Castle Circus
May 10-12Regina.Sask.
14-16 Saskatoon
• • • OTHER DATES--James H. Drew Exposition
M«y 10-15 Burlington,NC
Elliott Amusement Co.
May 11-16 Brighton,Mich
Showtime Follies
May 10 Little Rock, Ark
--•MAGIC--Pf. Miller-Magic Time USA
May 12William$port, Pa.
13 Mt. Union
Michigan Magic Day
May 14-15 Roseville,Mich
Carson & Barnes Circus
May 2 Duncan, Okla.
3 Ardmore
4 Gainesyillejex
5 Grapevine
6 McKinney
7 Greenville
8 Paris
rhe Circus Report
Special Day
by DON BIRDWEU
Sunday, April 18th became another day
for the Circus History books, as two year
old Carlos Obando the 2nd. son of veteran
high wire artist Carlos and Carol Obando,
became the youngest person to walk across
a tight wire, at the M&M Shrine Circus engagement in Sioux City, Iowa.
The feat, which was entered in the Guinness Book of World Records, was announced to the audience by Ringmaster Jimmy
Douglass.
The standing room only crowd was on its
feet to applaud the young wire artist upon
his successful completion of the rather long
solo walk, watched with concentration and
much pride by his parents and 5-year-old
sister Pamela, who herself was crossing the
wire when she could barely walk.
The event received heavy media coverage,
with Sioux City's Channel 9 devoting an entire segment of its news program to film
coverage of the walk, as well as lengthy in-
PageB
terviews of the Obando family. They later
presented a video tape of the crossing to the
proud parents.
After the performance there was a miniparty and celebration of performers and
staff on M&M in recognition of young Carlos and his record-breaking feated, hosted
by the parents and M&M Circus producer,
Mrs. Grace Mclntosh.
Museum Seeks Funds
Personnel of the Ringling-Bamum Circus
were on hand to help launch a campaign to
save "Circus" a group of small sculptures by
Alexander Calder, on loan to the Whitney
Museum since 1970. The works may have
to be sold to pay taxes owed by the Calder
estate in France, where the sculptor lived
until his death in 1976.
The work is displayed in a large plexiglass
case in the Whitney Museum. It has been
offered to the museum, which must raise
$1.25 million by May 31st, in order to keep
it
Page 6
Florida Date
Johnnie Marshall, through Eastern States
Promotions, recently produced a circus for
The Boca West Resort & Club residents picnic (Fla).
The day was a typical sunny Florida day
(no snow or ice). The lot was beautiful turf
(low grass) and Roberts Bros. Circus provided the big top.
The show consisted of V/: hour of entertainment featuring: Lee Ann Stephens who
opened with a single trap act; Jeff Earl,
dogs; Tammy Anderson, aerial ballet; Military ponies presented by Ian Craik; Freddie
the Fool (clown), Dennis Michael; Kalmar,
the Magician (George Rowe); Lee Ann Stephens, upside down walk; Dennis Michaels,
plate spinning; Tammy Anderson, swinging
ladder; Ian Craik and Lee Ann, juggling and
Lisa the elephant presented by Earl Jeff.
The band included Charlie Movers playing
drums and trumpet at the same time and
Lynne Michael, oragnist.
Robert Earl was general manager and superintendent; Teresa and Bobby Earl had
the concessions. Bob Stephens was prop
boss with the able assistance of Tom Carden, Jessie Moyer was seating manager, assisted by Ginny Simmons.
Doris Eari was side wall superintendent.
May 10, 1982
New Book
byMARJORIEJ. HACKETT
"CLOWN ALLEY" by Bill Ballantine • Pub
lished by Little-Brown • $18.95.
This has got to be the best $18 plus dollars
that I've invested in for our Circus Library
ever! Bill Ballantine has outdone himself
with this one. I do not really know him but
I do know many of the people mentioned in
this volume. His insights and observations
are classic.
He is very discreet because I am sure he
could have told many more "tales out of
school" - the school being the much touted
and publicized "Clown College" of the Ringling-Barnum Circus.
You will laugh, you may cry, like when you
read of the death of Otto Greibling, etc., but
you won't be able to put this book down for
very long until you want to pick it up to
paraphrase Paul Harvey, 'To find out the
rest of the story".
If I knew Bill's address in little old Groveland, I'd write right to him but I hope he
reads "Circus Report".
All of you readers out there, read Bill's
"Clown Alley."
The book is available at Haslam's Book
Store in St Petersburg, Fla. 33713, and I'm
sure it is available at Billy Rodgers in Gibsonton, or any good book store.
PageS
A Shrine Date
by DON BRIDWELL
The 32nd annual Abu Bekr Shrine Circus
was staged Apr. 13-18 at the Sioux City, la.
Municipal Arena, under the direction of Mrs.
Grace Mclntosh's M&M Circus Internationale and Potentate Kermit D. Lohry for the
Shrine.
The nearly 2% hour show is all new for '82
and features a new Oriental opening Spec,
by veteran costumer and scenic designer Jim
Douglass, who with Vem Woerner, operates
Circus Creations out of Daytona Beach, Fla.
The show was to go to Lincoln, Nebr. from
Sioux City for an April 20-25 run and then
was to resume its mid-Nebraska run on May
15th.
Show line-up and personnel for Sioux City
were as follows: Overture, Shrine Band under the direction of Bill (Boom Boom)
Browning; Oriental Fantasy, opening spec
with all personnel; Alan Gold's mixed cat
act; The Burketts, aerial cradle; The Darrell's educated albino mule; Two rings of
low wire acts with Miss Paterson in one ring
and The Obandos, featuring little 5-year-old
Pamela Obando on the wire, in the other
ring; Clowns (Vem Woerner, Oon Whizzer'
Bridwell, Jimmy 'Peanuts' Hylton and Alvin
'Chipmunk' Huston) with the Boxing Gag;
Barbara and Buckles Woodcock and their
elephant riding leopards; Two rings of displays with Lydia & Co, and the Jose's Comedy Trampoline; The Clowns with Big and
Little Firecracker; Two rings of juggling
with Oon Phillips & Co., and the Davisons;
The Albulet Bros., high wire; Intermission.
The second half opened with the Flying
Torralbas trapeze act; Clowns with the Lang
May 10,1982
AVAILABLE
RIDE CAMELS
For Zoo or Park
Also Animal Acts
Silver Mist, Trick Horse
Chimp
Other comedy fill-in acts
BILL RIVERS
10940 Riverside Ave.
B l o o m i n g t o n , Calif. - 92316
(714)
877 - 2 8 2 7
Shirt; Mr. Rythm, horse act; The Patricks,
rola bola; Clowns with the Safe Cracker
gag; Aerial Ballet with Miss Gracien and Miss
Sabrina and featuring Miss Lorelei's single
trapeze; Satani Demon, sword and fire act;
Woodcock's Shrine Circus Elephants and
closing with the Juliens Aerial Motorcycle.
The show was produced by Mrs. Grace Me
Intosh; Show announcer and Ringmaster,
Jim Douglass; Band Director, Bill "Boom
Boom" Browning; Producing Clown, Vern
Woerner; Prop Boss, Don Bonta; Asst Prop
Director, Carlos Obando. Spec and Show
wardrobe by Circus Creations.
Page 10
May 10.1982
for the kids and credits to many noted business concerns.
On the program, which had Annie (Allison
Smith) and Daddy Warbucks (Harve Presnell)
as the mc's, were stage presentations given by
Ringling Bros, and Barnum & Bailey Circus
by LLOYD E.JONES
(clowns, acrobats and teeterboard acts) with
The Easter Egg Roll at the White House is
Ringmaster Kit Haskett; Vignettes from the
the longest running traditional happening
Pirates of Penzance, the Broadway musical;
and a crowd of 20,000 to 30,000 took adVignettes from A Chorus Line; The Haggavantage of this opportunity to meet notdah; selections from the N. Y. Shakespeare
ables, be entertained and have fun on Apr.
Festival; Webster E. Drake, Shirt Tales 12th.
Panda and Racoon; Fred Flintstone; Barney
The back yard of the White House was
and Friends, a revue Playing Safe by Ronconverted into a varied entertainment cenald MacDonald; a musical sketch with Micter with military bands, kite exhibit, an ankey Mouse, Robin Hood, Rabbitt and Frietique car rally, plus the Egg Roll and hunt
nds; Vignettes from Annie and a half hour
for eggs autographed by world-wide notables program of the Le Grande David Show with
Cartoon characters like the Incredible Hulk, some 50 participants.
Mickey Mouse, Smurf and Poppa Smurf,
The Le Grande David Show rated front
Bubbles the Dancing Bee, The Thing. Scoopage publicity following the event in the
by Ooo and Webster E. Drake were repreBoston Globe and the Beverly Times.
sented and First Lady Nancy Reagan had
What a wonderful day it must have been
her picture taken with Spiderman.
for all - enjoying non-partisan fun at the
A 16 page program, a colorful one with a
Capitol.
cover by Charles Schulz had pages to color
Page 12
Circo Magico
by DON COVINGTON
Circo Magico Italiano is currently appearing in Tijuana, Mexico, An indefinite run
began in tate March and is expected to continue at least through the Easter holidays.
Owner/manager Franco Berosini has set up
his European style vinyl big top adjacent to
the downtown Bull Ring, an excellent location.
From first impression to last, this circus is
first class all the way. The entire lot is encircled with portable fencing and encompasses the four pole European style square big
top, a concession tent and a large menagerie tent. All trucks are late models and kept
clean as a whistle. Each piece of equipment
is labeled with the show logo and the mono
"El Gran Circo Nei Mundo . The tops are
all blue and white striped with a blue and
white diamond patterned sidewalk Interior
accents are red.
Entrance to the top is through a semi trailer, then directly into the spacious concession tent. The menagerie tent is not open
to the public and houses the ten performing
tigers, two black leopards, 12 twelve dogs,
and two elephants featured in the show.
Strings of white lights frame the entire big
top, marquee and entrance trailers. Shows
are presented twice daily at 6 and 9 p.m.
The interior of the tent provides seating
on three sides of an elevated thrust stage
complete with curtains and background
scenery. Box seats ring the stage, followed
by four rows of folding chairs (preferred
seating), five rows of chairs (premium seating), then bleachers (general admission).Tic
ket prices in Tijuana ranged from approximately $3.00 to $3.50 U.S. There were no
discounts for children.
The entire performance is presented on
stage with the exception of one high act.
Music is provided through tapes and is sequenced to action on stage. Lighting is excellent utilizing spotlights from a platform
over the main entrance in the rear of the
tent, lights flown from an overhead rigging
and stationary lights surrounding the stage.
Costuming is elaborate, colorful and sparkling. The overall effect of the show is that
of a top Las Vegas style spectacular as much
as a circus, the cast is yuung, enthusiastic
May 10. 1982
and talented. Timing is perfect. The prop
crew is able to set the stage in minimum
time, normally only a few seconds of blackout is required between acts.
The program in Tijuana opened with an
elaborate dance/production number featuring the chorus of 5 male and 12 female dancers, special effects, several costume changes
and entrances down graceful curving stairways above the audience. A troop of soccer playing bulldogs followed, providing
pandemonium as they chased balloons from
one side of the stage to the other.
The next portion of the program featured
an illusionist who provided an astounding
30 minutes of non-stop magic ranging from
nimble card and coin manipulations to full
stage production illusions. The entire chorus assisted, the men dressed in tuxedos, the
women in an ever changing arrary of dazzling costumes all color coordinated to the
theme of the illusions. The pace never lagged and the overall effect was spellbinding.
Silks were transformed to flowers, flowers
to doves, doves to ducks, ducks to girls and
girls to leopards. A fast-paced juggler appeared next followed by the show's three dwarfs
who staged an adept boxing match which
included some impressive acrobatic skills.
The first half ended with an excellent French
Can-Can highlighting the dancers augmented
by acrobats and tumblers.
Following intermission. Franco Berosini
entered the big cage for a display of affec\
lion training with his tigers. The charismatic Italian worked without sticks or a gun
and only occasionally picked up a short
whip for direction. He included putting his
head in a tiger's mouth and wrestling barehanded with one of the cats, in addition to
more traditional rollovers, jumps and pedestal work. Senor Berosini has an amazing
grace and air of nonchalance in the arena making a potentially dangerous act appear
to be just a light-hearted romp with his animals.
The dwarfs returned to distract the audience while the cage was being struck then
attention shifted to the high wire where the
Great Doval performed his graceful solo exhibition. Following passes on a bicycle and
a high unicycle, Doval climaxed his act with
a trip across the wire on stilts - an awesome
(Continued on Page 18)
May 10,1982
Page 14
WANTED
ACTS IN THE MICHIGAN AREA
- For Week of July 2-
Ifte taugft-molc
Possibly 2 More Weeks to Follow
Chimp • Juggling Wire act
Hand Balancing
- No Guy Lines Any Other Ground Acts
*
Dog Acts - Leopards
Quote Price with Photos in
First Letter to:
BOB ATTERBURY
Rte. 1 -Box 1210
Pipe Creek, Texas - 78063
DR. JACOB TAUB (77), a 48 year member of the Society of American Magicians,
passed away on April 4th. Me was the author of two recent books on card magic.
Survivors include his wife, Estelle, 2 sons.
2 grandchildren, as well as brothers and
sisters.
ui yort fW»O
The Acts
The Yaarab Shrine Circus at Marietta, Ga.,
was produced by the Coronas Circus avt
presented at Cobb Civic Center on Apr. 9-18.
The program as presented included: Pizza
Clown, pre-show warm-up; Introductions
and Legion of Honor; National Anthem; Jon
Friday, ringmaster; Circus Overture with Joe
Nappa and Mitzi Joyce, circus musicians.
The Bounding Kays, trampoline; La Gilda's
uncaged leopards and black panther; Princess Morning Star, trapeze and foot walk;
The Edwardo's Trio, bicycle troupe; George
and his ponies; Yaarab Temple Shrine clown
group; THe Ruwills, upside down plate spinning; Comedy Car, Arturo Rescigno 'Pizza';
Janie Coronas, Dazzling Dobermans; The
Wai I en da Duo, high wire; The Tangiers, tumbling titans, Intermission.
Circus Band, overture; The George Hanneford Family, riding act; Miss Evelyn, Lady
in the Moon, aerialist; Hans & Sigrid, hand
balancing; Yaarab Temple Clowns, Cathy
and Miss Dianne with the Hanneford elephants; Clown of Mystery. Master Pizza and
Tide; The Sensational Swaying Stars 'Fossetts'; Finale.
»
Page 18
May 10,1982
Reid Bros.
by WALLACES. WINTER
When Reid Bros. Circus played in Coos Bay
(Oregon) they were sponsored by the Hillah
Shrine Club. After seeing the two previous
yean performances, I think this was the best
program they have had. They play in small
gyms, which makes this performance very
close to the public.
The performance lasted 2 hours and 20
minutes and ran as follows:
Tiger act with 9 very large tigers; 2 leopards and 1 jaguar in an unleashed act; Dog
act; Bird act; Boxing Kangaroo act; Riding
act; 3 large elephant act; Magic act; Juggling act; Double trap and 2 single trap acts;
Unicycle act; 2 clown numbers; Foot juggling set
John and Betty Reid presented me with a
cap and nylon jacket with their logo on both.
(A tiger jumping through a fire hoop).
The Jack Bell Tent. CFA No. 90. held their
annual Founders Day program on April 18th
at Seattle.
The Castle Circus will be playing Bellingham, Wash., on June 24th.
Animal Delivery
by BOBBY GIBBS
On Mar. 31st, the writer delivered Tina'
the former Reno, Neb. performing elephant
to Larry Jefferies in Wills Point, Texas. She
was purchased, along with the former Circus
World Museum elephant trailer, from D. R.
Miller.
Mr. Jeffries will be using them at his animal training school, where such circus animal as Lou Regan, and "Red" Joseph Hartman have been working this past winter, to
train animals and acts for Mr. Jeffries.
Pee Wee Pinson accompanied Bobby Gibbs
to the Texas farm and everyone had a nice
cookout and a lot of jackpots were cut up.
CIRCUS MAGICO (Continued)
display of equilibrium.
An accomplished single acrobatic turn followed, featuring a one hand stand on a tower of blocks. The two young elephants arrived next to perform a fast-paced routine accomplished with minimum assistance from
their trainer. The bulls moved from trick to
trick without cues to the delight of the audience.
An unusual contortionist followed who
performed 3 series of mind-boggling stunts
on an elevated platform. The gentleman, introduced as being from Argentina, was carried onto the stage in a plexiglass box just
targe enough for him to twist himself into.
After he unwound himself from that container, he demonstrated an amazing ability
to twist and flex his body in ways that defy
description.
Following a final appearance of the three
dwarfs, the dancers returned for a production which again featured gorgeous costumes, lively dances, acrobatics and special
effects. At the conclusion of this, the entire
cast was recalled for a final bow. Tne gentlemen appeared in tuxedos, the ladies in
gowns - an elegant conclusion to a most impressive show.
KEN KARTER, ventriloquist, was featured on a variety show in the San Francisco
area for the Northern California Black Music Association, on April 19th.
AMERICAN
MUSEUM
^MACIC
'MONSTROUS.
See ou threat
ghastljTgory
GUIEI9TINE!
^ Marshall,Michigan 49068 U S A J
Page 20
Florida Notes
by "Circus Joe" Valenciano
Here is a report from the Glenwocd Mobile Home Park in Tampa, Fla.
Owner, Tony Lyle went in the 4th of
July parade last year, dressed as a clown
and created his own funny make-up.
Daughter Tonya and son, Tony, Jr. were
part of the Rex Bros. Circus at a North Tampa date. Tonya was a magician's assistant and
Tony, Jr. was a clown.
In late Sept., the Lyle's spent some time at
the Sarasota Sailor Circus, and while there
they helped out with the taping of a TV
Children's Show which at one point had a
circus setting in its format.
A resident of the park, Kim Ann Cloud,
made several visits with friends to Joe's
Swiss Chalet, which contains the Buddy L
Tonka Bros. Miniature Circus.
Joe G. Valenciano, Golf Kart King, of 51st
St., has just added a third kart to his collection. The new one is a "Pargo" one seater.
The two others are hard to find models, a
May 10, 1982
white "Viking" and a dark blue "Allis Chalmers." The white Viking was used in a fourth of July parade, as Circus Joe and a friend
clowned around r it
GENEand ELEANOR MENDEZ, high wire
act, and THE FLYING CARROLLS, moved
to Macao with the Cottle-Chipperfield Circus
after the show closed in Hongkong on April
25th. The Macao date runs until May 31st, a
period of 4 weeks.
IRVIN FELO, KENNETH FELD and ARNOLD BRAMOW, of the Ringling-Bamum
Circus, paid a surprise visit to Circus Vargas
at Indio, Calif., on April 19th.
PAUL M. TAMBOURY (Sad-Sam) and SUSAN A. MUNSON were married at St. Vincent de Paul Church in Petaluma, Calif., on
May 8th. The couple will be residing in Petaluma.
Page 22
May 10, 1982
6th CIRCUS WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS
by DAVID JAMIESON
The 6th Circus World Championships, staged on Nov. 19-20 in London under Roberts Bros. Circus Hippodrome Big Top, i
broke new ground by including artists from
the Soviet Union and the People's Republic
of China who competed with acts representing Spain. Poland, USA, Bulgaria and Mexico, in four categories. The presence of acts
from cultures so different to the West
brought a new dimension to the Championships.
The Circus World Championships are masterminded by sports commentator and TV
producer Adrian Metcalfe and it is the tele-
recent one. Nevertheless, the list of competing acts and winners over the past six years
makes an impressive roll-call of talent and
the latest competition extended the range
by the inclusion of new categories.
The first category was Supertroupe, matching two top acrobatic troupes against each
other. This was an interesting idea, though
the two acts chosen were very different. The
Parvanovi {Bulgaria) are the lively and good
looking team of 11, one girl and 10 men and
boys, who won the Gold Clown award at the
1980 Monte Carlo Festival. Their spectacular springboard routine is enhanced by stirring music, driving them on to higher and
vision programs of the event that make it
financially viable.
The the last two years, only two acts in
each category have taken part and so th«
great feeling of competitiveness, apparent
in the early Championships, has tended to
be missing. Acts are considered for the
event by the organizing committee, which
includes as talent coordinator agent Roberto Germains of the Noel Gay Agency. Some
acts considered are unable to take part owing to their long-term contracts with circuses
or cabarets. Others decline'the invitation, the
idea of circus athletes in a competition with
one another being after all a comparatively
higher human pyramids and by the artists'
own smiling personalities and team spirit
The main top mounter, 14 yean old, but
already highly professional, somersaulted
from the springboard to five men high in
fine fashion. Other such acts use a steel
perch pole held by the men in the pyramid for extra stability; not so the Parvanovi - and their act was more impressive for
rt.
The Sarach Troupe (USSR), the first act
from the Moscow State Circus to be seen
in England for 10 years, in contrast was a
much slower style. The five men and two
(Continued on Page 25)
Show Acts
by DAVID E. REID
.The American Continental Circus played
Medford, Ore,, April 17th, sponsored by the
Hillah Temple Shrine, Ashland, Ore. The
show was presented at the Jackson County
Exposition Center Building.
The program: Circus overture, W. Reynolds, leader, trumpet; sax, organ, drums.
Kay Rosa ire's mixed wild animals; Clowns
with The Dog Catcher; Ruben Duo, cradle;
Mareiva Duo, cradle; Mr. Fred & Co., novelty act with trunk and contortion; Goldfinger, one finger stand; Acadis, balancing
and one finger stand; Super Locos (5) comedy knockabout/tumbling; The Armondos,
juggling; Maridons, high wire (2 girts, 1 man)
Adams' Chimps; Georgina's Menagerie (camel, llamas, pony, monkey; Lemke's Chimp
act; Aerial Ballet with 10 wen girls and South
American decor; Dancing Gauchos; Intermission, with elephant rides and book pitch.
Erik & Bobbi, dog act; Clowns with Hot
Dog gag; The Porredon Perch; Dino, Ramon
and Rafael, rofa bola; The Flying Valencias
l5); Wozniak Troupe, teeterboard; Elephant
act presented by Tommy and Pom Pom
Donoho. The announcer was Mike Piel.
REWARD $1,000
For* information and the positive location of Murray Hill.
- Call Collect ED or DICK DRAKE
805 822 4094
Reward paid upon recovery of elephants
and equipment
The Circus Report
WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS (Continued)
girls performed a perch act which was amazingly innovative, producing some startling
routines. One girl performed a Marinelli
bend at the top of one perch balanced on
one man's forehead, while this man was on
a platform held by three other men. The finale of the act was a column with four
people and three perches! Needless to say,
safety lunges were worn, with such extremely difficult tricks. They were used, too,
occasionally, and one sympathized with the
artists, working very near to the cupola of
the big top, whereas normally they would
perform in a building in which there wuuld
be more room for maneuvering.
Page 25
uettes on the flexible pole held by her two
partners. Their routine features a double
back somersault, as does that of the Four
Koziaks (Poland). The graceful Lydia Koziak also performs a forward somersault
with one and a half twists, on this occasion blindfolded. The overall quality of
Lydia's work, particularly her rock-steady
landings and the well choreographed presentation were well received by the enthusiastic
audience who showed their disapproval of
the judges with boos and jeers when they
gave the Koziaks only 38 for presentation
against 41 for the Dymek. For content, the
Koziak received 45, the Dymek 41, so the
Koziaks were the winners by just one point.
(Incidentally, the judges' marks are written
down before they are displayed on the electronic Scoreboard so there can be no question
of a judge changing his or her marksl).
The panel of judges comprised of circus
directors Tommy Roberts (Great Britain),
Arturo Castillo (Spain), Liana Orfei (Italy),
Bernhard Paul of Circus Roncalli (Germany)
The final category. Flying Trapeze, has
and Max Schumann (Denmark), marking out been the traditional climax of the Chamof 100, they gave the Parvanovi 45 for both pionships but bad luck had dogged the
content and presentation, fora total of 90,
category this year. The original acts booked
and the Sarach 43 for content and 35 for
the Michaels (last year's joint winners with
presentation for a total of 78, a lower score
the Jimenez) and the Segreras, both had to
than I had anticipated. The Parvanovi rewithdraw, the Michaels due to injury.
ceived their Supertroupe gold medals from
The Ramos (Mexico) arrived in London to
the British Olympic swimming gold medalcompete but ace flyer Serge Ramos dislocalist Duncan Goodhew.
ted his shoulder while performing in a TV
In the foot juggling category, there was a
show recorded at Roberts Bros. Circus on
contrast in style. Chen Wenziu and Zheng
Nov. 15th and so had to withdraw. The reJianhui are two lady members of the Chinmaining act, the Flying Bells (Mexico), three
ese acrobatic theatre of Chunking. Working
men and a girl, therefore closed the show
in unison, they manipulated earthenware
with a good routine, though not as outstanchamber pots, tables and rugs with a sureding as some of the superb flying acts seen
ness and dexterity and also with that modat the Championships. If this judgement
est charm and artistry which is a feature of
sounds a little harsh, particularly as both
so many Chinese acts.
male flyers in the Bell can accomplish the
The glamorous Consuela Reyes (Spain)
triple, it should be taken as an indication of
provided a fast-paced display, with up-dated the rising standard of the world's flying acts
Beethoven musical accompaniment, includthese days.
ing one sequence where she juggled five balls
The Championships owe a lot to the organ
between her hands and her feet.
, izing ability and diplomacy of the ringmasThe judges gave the Chinese act 33 for con- ters, including Norman Barrett, and were
accompanied by a fine big band (including
tent and 37 for presentation for a total of
a harpist, a rare sight indeed in a circus) dir70 points, and 41 and 37 for a total of 78
to Miss Reyes.
ected by Kenny Clayton.
The third category, Russian pole acrobaThe tickets for the show went to pay for
tics, gave a unique chance to see and comyoung children's play facilities in the Lonpare two acts which have enjoyed a high
don Borough of Fulham and Hammersmith,
reputation in recent years. The Trio Dymek
and the TV shows of the event will be seen
originally from Poland, but now residents
on various stations in 1982.
of the United States, feature the statuesque
blonde lolanthe who somersaults and piro-
Page 26
Clown Club
by CHUCK CRESPQ
Chuck "Chuckles" Crespo, formerly of
Ringling Bros, and Bamum & Bailey, Clyde
Beany-Cole Bros. Circus is back in Chicago.
He is performing for cable TV and night
clubs. He has also joined a new clown group
with Sgt. Mike Acosta who was featured last
year on Real People for his work as a clown
with the Chicago Police Dept The vice president of the club, George Cincotta, is also a
clowning policeman. The group in all has six
police officers who clown all over the city
of Chicago, for the police dept. and other
events.
The president of the group is Norman "Dino" Volpe who has been clowning for ten
years. The base of his clowning started with
the Veterans of Foreign Wars. He brought
his clowning to all events in this organisation. The VFW even honored him with a
life membership in the organization for all
his time and effort put into clowning. He
will also be appearing in the Loyalty Day
May 10, 1982
Parade to be held in Chicago on May 1st
The group is called 'Crazy Clowns Galore
of Chicago' and they are now awaiting their
confirmation for the alley in the Clowns of
America.
Weight Loss
A UPI report from Auburn, Ala., indicates
that 'Stacey' a 3200 Ib. elephant with the
Hoxie Bros. Circus was understudy by the
Auburn University clinic for large animals.
According to the report, the elephant has
been losing weight for about a year. Dr. Jay
Hamburg, of the University, said that he
was not too concerned about the weight
loss. "Really, 500 Ibs. isn't that much for
an elephant," he added.
Dr. Humburg said the circus brought the
elephant to the clinic because she was losing weight He said that he was conducting
a series of tests but had not discovered the
cause.
The Circus Report
Royal Lichtenstein
by BRUCE HAWLEY
About an hour before sunset on Apt. 21st.
on the lush-green campus of Fairfield University in Fairfield, Conn., a white-faced female performer in white tights pranced into
a red and yellow circus ring which was placed against a backdrop of a colorful square
dressing tent and the rigging of a Roman
Rings act, and with her flute, in pied-piper
fashion, musically signaled the opening of a
performance of the Royal Lichtenstein Quar
ter Ring Sidewalk Circus.
She was quickly joined by four other performers of this, the World's "Smallest Complete Circus", who were also attired in white
tights and white makeup.
In the spirit and style of a medieval circus,
these five human performers, along with
their five animal companions, quickly captured the attention of a few hundred college students and professors who were passing by the campus center.
The delightful one-hour performance of
this San Jose, Calif., based circus included
all of the basic acts of a traditional circus.
The opening "spec" was followed by an exhibition of foot balancing by Robert Lee
and a dog and clown act by the clown-ringmaster Nick Weber, James Larson, a gymnast from Dartmouth College, then gave a
strong performance on the Roman Rings,
and the entire troupe participated in a fairy
tale skit that was laced with contemporary
Page 27
political humor. Then came the monkey
act, juggling, the bear act and a Houdinistyle escape trick. The finale consisted of
a dog and pony routine which was preceded by a demonstration of fire eating by Mr.
Weber.
As the sun was setting at the end of this
performance, the performers passed the
hat for donations and the show quickly
struck its tent and headed into the night
for the next performance in Bethlehem,Pa.
BILLY FORD and EDDIE BUSCH,spent
a vacation in Atlantic City and also report
that they visited Hoxie Bros, Circus during
the show's Macon, Ga., date.
Mr. and Mrs. ADEN LOWRY, of Sedan,
Kansas, and Dr. and Mrs. HOWARD K I L
LOUGH, of Winfield, Kansas, attended the
National Clown Convention in Albuquerque
(NM) April 13-17. Killough is National Chaplain of the organization.
THE KLEMENTIS, bicycle act, is featured at the Scala in Madrid, Spain. They'll be
there thru the end of August.
Page 28
In the news
Monday, Dec. 28,1981 • The Bulletin in
Philadelphia, its Atlantic City Report, Charles LJbrizzi column about shows and acts
presented in Atlantic City, comments about
the best and worst acts in the casino productions. "The most breath-taking act belonged
to Douglas MacValley's Gravity-defying cyclists in the Globe of Death wire cage in the
Revue 'Playboy Fantasy'."
Douglas MacValley's Globe of Death, Unit
No. 2, with Guillermo Diaz and Orlando Cas
trillon made a successful debut this year
with the George Hubler Circus, followed by
Garden Bros. Circus and will continue the
1982 tour with different shows and will be
featured this summer at the Storytown
Amusement Park, Lake George, NY, booked by Tibor Alexander.
Atlantic City magazine "Entertainer of the
Year Awards" nominate Douglas MacValley
Globe of Death for the 1982 Award "Best
Act", and Playboy Motorcycle, best production number, also Peter Jackson best producer.
May 10,1982
Douglas MacValley will be the Stunt Coordinator for the special event produced by
Playboy in Atlantic City on the beach in
front of the hotel. The show will feature
Douglas MacValley's Globe of Death and
will be a Thrill Show with television celebreties as host and will be taped for the Play
boy cable TV in California.
Because of the success of the show 'Playboy Fantasy', with Douglas MacValley's
Globe of Death, the Playboy Hotel h»$ extended for one more year the act's contract
with an option for Peter Jackson to continue to present the show at the Cabaret Theatre, new numbers will fill the 60 minute revue, including McValley's newest stunt act
Humberto Fonseca recently made his debut in America with Douglas MacValley in
the Globe of Death. Humberto will be doing MacValley's new stunt for the Playboy
revue.
The Circus Report
Page 29
At Seattle
byMIKESPORRER
The Seattle Shrine's Nile Temple held its
38th annual circus. March 19-21, at the
Seattle Center Coliseum. The show was produced by Tarzan Zerbini this year with the
Zerbini/Castte blue unit, a complete new
show.
This year the Shrine reportedly doubled
their advertising budget and doubled the
attendance. Business on Friday was soft,
but Saturday and Sunday crowds were well
ahead of last year.
Sorry to say there was no program book,
leaving the crowd to wonder who the acts
were. At the Sunday matinee Herbie Weber
slipped and fell from the low wire, but was
able to continue. He is a real pro and returned to the wire to finish the act.
Following the matinee. Circus Fans from
the Jack Bell Tent No. 90, held a donut and
lemonade party. Performers and working
people enjoyed the treat as it is one of the
only two towns where circus fans come out
to make the circus welcome. On hand to ".
visit were Bob and Irma Dunham, and we
look forward to their visit next year.
Any fans thinking about visiting the Seattle
area will find we have a solid line up this
year of shows • Wenatchee Youth, American
Continental, Ford Bros., Circus Vargas, John
Strong, and RingJing Blue. This sounds like
a king sized year. The Hubert Castle Circus
will return in June after playing dates in
British Columbia.
2nd Unit
Roberts Bros. Circus of Sarasota, will field
a second unit to produce a free circus in con
SIEGEIL&. CANTED
Attorneys at Law
Immigration
• Pi r m . u n t i l Kt snl. nl \ INKS •
* Non-Immigrant Vitas* Imi-siors• Krliihtrs -Labor ( rrlifkatmn •
•Intra-t ompan) Transfers* Students*
• I >• pi > r I .H inn • Nut ur .ill/ .il mil *
* International \ A\ and Trade •
1634 Main Street. Sarasota. Florida 335r
Telephone: (813) 366 7935
junction with the Spring midway event at
Fort Bragg, N C. Date: for the show are May
27th thru June 5th,
According to Paul Robinson, Creative Outlet Largo, Fla., the circus under canvas will
be produced by Bob Earl and will perform
twice daily and three times daily on weekends. Additional free entertainment wilt also be booked.
Deggeller Attractions will field a ride midway, and the event will operate on a "Pay0 ne-Price" format similar to that being used by many amusement parks, with one ticket good for all rides, circus, and other free
entertainment.